I recently learnt of the word ‘autumnal’. Ask me why it took nearly 28 years to discover this and be met with a dumbstruck shrug. Here I am representing my native American-English to Belgians, and all I can say to describe a whiskey cocktail with bitters, cinnamon and clove smoke is “OMG it’s so Fall!”… Autumnal. Autumnal…. I should have read more as a child [bangs palm to forehead]. Of course Autumn is the only season that gets such a regal adjective. It’s rich. It’s vibrant. It’s velvety. It’s passionate. It’s Autumnal. The crisp air and lowering temperatures call for…

As the cold winter weather grows in strength, I always fall into a rut with my clothes. It happens year after year, a stretch of time when getting dressed becomes more a mission of bodily warmth than creative style. I despise it. In these mornings I open the closet and my hands, operating on auto-pilot, reach for the tank top + wooly knit combo that worked so well yesterday, and the day before, and OH YEAH, the day before that. Y’know sometimes in life, you just need a quick and nasty slap in the face – to remind you that…

UTILITA STATE

Personal style blog, where fashion meets function. Posts are dedicated to the belief that a single utility item can go a long way, illustrating how you can use one item in both professional and leisure settings.